Holder for campaign ribbons



y 1965 G. L. HARN 3,192,655

HOLDER FOR CAMPAIGN RIBBONS Filed June 24, 1963 INVENTOR. GENE L, HARM MW/ 5 4a A GENT United States Patent ice i ,3; 2, 32:

3,192,655 HOLDER FOR CAl /HAIGN RIBBGNS Gene L. Ham, 22667 Brentwood St, Co'iton, Calif. Filed June 24, I963, Ser. No. 289,870 1 Claim. (Cl, 40-45) The present invention relates to a holder for military campaign ribbons, and its primary object is to provide a new and useful device for permanently mounting a plurality of such ribbons in straight, parallel, uniformly spaced rows, so that they may be attached as a single unit to a uniform jacket or coat.

There are devices on the market for mounting one or more ribbons on a single straight bar having pins at both ends which are pushed through the material of the uniform and secured on the inside thereof by clamp buttons or the like. However, when the number of ribbons exceeds three, it is necessary to use two or more such bars, each of which must be carefully pinned to the uniform. As the number of ribbons increases, it becomes increasingly more tedious to attach the ribbons each time they are changed from one uniform jacket to another, as it is necessary that the several bars of ribbons be exactly parallel to one another, vertically aligned, and with minimum clearance between adjacent rows. This requires painstaking care in determining the exact points where the pins are pushed through the jacket material, and frequent repeated mounting are necessary when it is found that a bar is misaligned, all of which is time-consuming and exasperating.

There is also a problem in removably mounting certain ribbons on the mounting bar where there are metal emblems attached to the ribbon, such as stars, oak leaf clusters, and the like. Such emblems are customarily attached to the ribbons by prongs which are pushed through the ribbons and clinched on the back side of the ribbon backing plate. The ribbons and their metal backing plates are formed with inwardly turned edge flanges which grip the edges of the mounting bar. To mount them, the ribbons are inserted endwise into the bar and are slid along the length thereof to the desired position. There is not enough clearance between the ribbon backing plate and its mounting bar to accommodate the bentover prongs of metal emblems, and therefore the usual mounting bar has longitudinally extending slots provided therein behind each ribbon, into which the clinched-over emblem prongs may project. The emblems must be attached to their respective ribbons after the ribbons have been attached to the bar; and if the ribbon is to be removed from the ar, the emblem must first be removed from the ribbon. This, too is a time-consuming and tedious operation, and another important object of the invention is to provide a ribbon mounting bar which is so constructed and arranged that any ribbon having an emblem attached thereto may be quickly and easily mounted on the bar by merely sliding the ribbon endwise onto the bar to the desired position without interference due to clinched-over prongs.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of a ribbon holder embodying the principles of the invention, some of the ribbons being mounted in place, and others being omitted to show the construction of the holder;

FIGURE 2 is a rear elevational View of the same, drawn to slightly smaller scale;

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the invention; and

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view, taken at 44 in FIGURE 1.

In the drawings, the ribbon holder of the present invention is designated in its entirety by the reference numeral 10, and is seen to comprise a generally rectangular'metal plate 11 having a plurality of vertically spaced, parallel, horizontally extending ribbon bars 12 on the front side thereof, and pins 13 projecting rearwardly from the back side at the four principal corners thereof. In the illustrated embodiment, the plate 11 has a tab 14 projecting upwardly from the top edge thereof, upon which a short bar 12 is mounted; the short bar 12' be ing provided to support a single ribbon, whereas the other bars 12 support three ribbons each.

Each of the bars 12, 12' is formed of strip metal bent into a cross-sectional configuration consisting of a channel portion 15 having laterally outwardly turned marginal edges 16. The flanges '16 are tapered at their ends to facilitate the insertion of the ribbons which are inserted endwise onto the bars 12, 12, and slid lengthwise thereon. The plate 11 has apertures 29 provided therein directly under the channels 15 at spaced intervals along the length of the bars, and these apertures are filled with solder 21, which spreads out by capillary action between the plate and the, channel when the solder is molten, and bonds the channels to the plate.

The campaign ribbons are designated generally by the reference numeral 22, and as best shown in FIGURE 4, each ribbon consists of ribbon fabric material 23 mounted on a metal backing plate 24. The backing plate 24 has rearwardly and inwardly turned flanges 25 along the longitudinal edges thereof, and the extremities of these flanges are bent back over themselves at 26 to confine and cover the edges of the ribbon fabric. The flanges Z5 engage and grip the marginal edges 16 of the bars 12 when the ribbons are mounted thereon.

Some campaign ribbons have metal emblems attached thereto, such as oak leaf clusters, stars and the like, and one such emblem is shown at 30. The emblem 3% (in this case a star) is attached to the ribbon by means of prongs 31, which are pushed through the ribbon fabric 23 and through a slot (not shown) in the backing plate 24. The projecting ends of the prongs 31 are then clinched over on the back side of the plate 24-, as shown in FIGURE 4, where they protrude somewhat above the surface of the backing plate.

The channel 15 provides clearance behind the ribbon backing plate 24 for the protruding, clinched-over prongs 31, and allows the ribbon with attached emblem 39 to be slid freely along the length of the bar 12, and to be inserted on the bar or removed therefrom without interference. Perhaps even more important, the channel 15 provides solid support for the flanges l6 and positions the latter at a distance from the plate 11 to provide ample clearance between the flanges 16 and the plate 11 to accommodate the inwardly turned ribbon flanges 25. This insures that the edges of the ribbon fiange do not rub against the plate and thereby interfere with the free sliding movement of the ribbon along its mounting bar 12. The bottom of the channel 15 proves a wide, flat base which bears solidly against the plate 11 and provides ample contact areas for soldering or spot welding the bar to the plate.

The holder 16, with ribbons 22 mounted thereon, is attached to the uniform jacket or coat by pushing the pins 13 through the fabric material of the coat. Releasable clamp buttons 32 are then inserted over the ends of the pins 13 and are allowed to clamp onto the pins, which covers the points of the pins, and secures the holder against being removed from the uniform. The clamp buttons 32 are well known in the art, and are provided with spring gripping means (not shown) which is released by pressing together two finger grips 33.

While I have shown and described in considerable detail what I believe to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that various changes may be made in the shape and arrangement of the several parts without departing frornthe broad scope .of the invention as definedin the following claim. For example, the plate 11 need not be as Wide as shown in the drawings, but might be made considerably narrower, in which case the pins 13 might be fixed to the bottoms of the channelslS at the corner of the holder.

I claim: s

A holder for military campaign ribbons of the type having rearwardly and inwardly turned flanges along the longitudinal edges thereof, including ribbons aving emblems attached thereto by prongs that project from the back side of the ribbon and are clinched over, comprising:

a flat metal plate of generally rectangular configuration;

a plurality of vertically spaced, horizontal bars mounted on the front side of said plate, said bars being parallel to one another and uniformly spaced apart;

each of said bars being formed of strip metal and having a channel-shaped cross-sectional configuration with laterally outwardly turned marginal edges which are slidably engageable by said inwardly turned flanges on said ribbons;

said channel providing a recess behind said ribbon into which said clinched-over prongs may project without interference, whereby said ribbons having attached emblems may he slid lengthwise along said bars;

said outwardly turned marginal edges of said bars being spaced outwardly from said plates at distance greater than the rearward projection of said ribbon flanges;

the bottoms of said bars being bonded on their back .sides to said plate;

said holder having rearwardly projecting pins near the corners'thereof; and

means insertable onto said pins and releasably engageable therewith to secure said holder to a garment.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,428,723 9/22 Urness 40-140 2,357,231 8/44 Sleeper 401.5 2,495,557 1/50 Elkies 401.6 2,795,876 6/57 Hayes 401.5 2,832,161 4/58 Murphy 40-1.5

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner.

JEROME SCHNALL, Examiner. 

